Portable footrests for card players



April 1968 E. w. LOWDERMILK 3,376,069

PORTABLE FOOTRESTS FOR CARD PLAYERS Filed Sept. 28, 1965 A TTORNEY //v VEN TOR fZBE/PT h! LOWOE/iM/L/f Q jHQQHL United States Patent 3,376,069 PORTABLE FOOTRESTS FOR CARD PLAYERS Elbert W. Lowdermilk, 1950 W. Dartmouth Ave., Englewood, Colo. 80110 Filed Sept. 28, 1966, Ser. No. 582,663 2 Claims. (Cl. 297439) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A hollow, elongated body shell, of semi-cylindrical, open bottomed cross section, with closed semi-circular ends, provided with a transverse leg-mounting Strip at each extremity of the open bottom and with a leg-retaining rod extending transversally across the open bottom intermediate said mounting strips, said ends having legstorage holes and said mounting strips having leg-receiving sockets.

This invention relates to a footrest for card players, more particularly for use by inveterate bridge players accustomed to extremely long periods of play.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a neat, handy, compact, portable, footrest which can be conveniently carried in a conventional ladys handbag and which can be quickly, easily and inconspicuously assembled for placement under a card table in front of the player to provide a comfortable rest for the feet during exhaustive periods of play and which can be readily disassembled and stowed for carrying when the game is finished.

Other objects and advantages reside in the detail construction of the invention, which is designed for simplicity, economy, and efiiciency. These will become more apparent from the following description.

In the following detailed description of the invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawing which forms a part hereof. Like numerals :refer to like parts in all views of the drawing and throughout the description.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the portable footrest of this invention as it would appear wrapped for carry- 111g;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the footrest removed from its wrapping and inverted ready for erection;

FIG. 3 is a similar view showing the footrest erected ready for use;

FIG. 4 is a detail side view of a supporting leg as used in this invention;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged, fragmentary, longitudinal, vertical section taken at one extremity of the footrest when the latter is in the position of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 6 is a similarly enlarged, fragmentary, elevational view of the end of the footrest opposite to the end shown in FIG. 3.

The invention comprises five separable parts-a body shall 10 and four, preferably tubular, legs 11. The body shell has an elongated, hollow, semi-cylindrical, openbottomed shape and is closed at its extremities by permanent semi-circular end plates 12 provided with leg holes 13. A leg mounting strip 14 is secured to and extends transversally of the open bottom of the shell at, or adjacent, each extremity of the latter.

The mounting strips 14 may be fixedly attached to the end plates 12 and to the shell 10 in any desired manner or they may be formed as inwardly turned flanges on the lower edges of the end plates. A leg retaining rod 15 is mounted in suitable mounting ears 16 on the two sides of the shell and extends across the open bottom thereof intermediate the end plates 12.

Two tubular leg sockets 17 are mounted or formed upon each mounting strip. The leg sockets 17 on each strip lie in a common transverse plane and incline uniformly outward from each other to receive the upper extremities of the legs 11. The legs are equal in length and are preferably provided at their lower extremities with non-marring floor-engaging balls 18.

The footrest, when erected, presents the appearance shown in FIG. 3 with the body shell supported in a horizontal position, with its open side directed downwardly, by the flaring legs 11 so as to provide a convenient, rounded footrest for the user.

The footrest is disassembled for carrying by inverting the body shell; withdrawing the legs 11 from their sockets 17; and inserting the legs through the leg holes 13 in the end plates 12, as illustrated in FIG. 2, so that the legs will be completely contained in and enclosed by the body shell and retained in place by the rod 15.

The disassembled footrest can then be placed in a pocketed flexible case 19 provided with a conventional snap fastener 20 for convenience in carrying.

It is preferred to place three of the leg holes 13 in one of the end plates 12, as shown in FIG. 3, and a single leg hole in the other end plate positioned as shown at 21 in FIG. 6, so that three of the four legs can be inserted from one end of the body shell 10 and the fourth from the opposite end, as shown in FIG. 2, thus maintaining the legs in substantially parallel unobstructed positions in the body shell.

As an additional convenience the legs are formed from non-magnetic material and the body shell, or at least the leg mounting stirps 14, of magnetic material. The upper extremities of the legs are provided with permanentlymagnetic tips 22, as shown in FIG. 5, so that when the legs are inserted in their retaining sockets 17 they will be magnetically attracted so as to retain them in position until manually withdrawn.

While a specific form of the invention has been described and illustrated herein, it is to be understood that the same may be varied within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A portable footrets comprising:

(a) an elongated, hollow, semi-cylindrical body shell with closed ends and open bottom and having openings in said closed ends through which said leg elements may be inserted for storage in said shell;

(b) leg sockets extending downwardly from said body shell;

(0) a leg element slidably inserted in each of said leg sockets and supporting said body shell from a supporting surface;

(d) a mounting strip affixed to said body shell and extending laterally across said open bottom adjacent each extremity of the latter, said leg sockets being mounted on and extending downwardly from said mounting strips; and

(e) a leg retaining rod secured to the sides of said body shell and extending across said open bottom intermediate said mounting strips to support said leg elements when the latter are stored in said shell. 2. A portable footrest is described in claim 1 having magnetically engageable means on the upper extremities of said leg elements for retaining said elements in said sockets.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,736,366 2/1956 Calabrase 248-165 2,989,142 6/1961 Gill 2'48-165 X 1 3,132,835 -5/1964-- Drabert 248-397 3,162,486 12/1964 Emery 297-439 5 FOREIGN PATENTS 315,503 9/1956 Switzerland.

CASMIR A. NUNBERG, Primary Examiner. 

